Chains that Bind Us
by FlamingFlyingFoxOfDoom
Summary: War breaks out. Eleth is being stolen from Windor, Fendel, and Strahta. Amestris stands alone in fighting the three countries. Edward finds himself allying with the enemy, and Asbel trying to find remnants of his easy trust. When so much is on the line, how can he trust so easily? -After Lineage and Legacies, during FMAB story. SPOILERS!-
1. Chapter 1

…**Um… A cross over? 'Nough said. **

**I do not own FullMetal Alchemist or Tales of Graces.**

**One**

War. Raging war. Sword against gun, magic against science. Fire raging against fire. He had hated war as a child, and still did. It surged through him, how bitterly hypocritical he is. As he walked down the stone corridor, the sourness of his position filled his mouth. He reminded himself, he had to do this. He had to defeat this foreign nation to protect those he cared for.

The familiar feeling of uselessness bit at him. He hated he couldn't do anything to change this, besides fight it out. It ate at him. What reason would it have for this country to steal not only Windor's, but both Fendel's, and Strahta's eleth? Why would they do it?

Fendel had done it before. Try to steal Windor's eleth. But they needed it to survive. He cursed at himself for his own part in their eleth depletion. This other country, they didn't need it to live. Why would they be stealing it? Life there didn't need the source.

A hand clasped his.

He looked over to where his dear friend smiled up at him, her eyes reassuring. She wanted him to know everything will be all right. She wanted him to not blame himself for things he can't change.

He smiled sadly and sighed. She was right. There was nothing they could do to change this. He looked back at her, new determination in his brown eyes. She's one reason. She's one thing he has to protect.

Together, hand in hand, the pair proceeded down into the meeting hall.

They released hands outside the door, inhaling. He pushed open them to allow him and her entry.

"Richard!" a knight cladded in white sighed in relief. "You took so long, I was starting to worry-"

"Don't worry, Asbel." The woman next to Richard smiled "I wouldn't let him get hurt."

Richard smiled back at her and took his place at the end of the long table. The flag of Windor was hanging behind him. Asbel was on his right side, the woman, Sophie, on his left.

"Now, we need to talk about this threat." A blue haired man said. He pushed up his glasses. He sat on the right side of President Paradine of Strahta.

"That is why we gathered here." Richard nodded.

"The enemy is fighting to steal our eleth." Malik, the representative of Fendel stated. Fourier, an Amarcian researcher, sat to his left.

"At this rate, everything's going to die in a few years." She contributed. "We're going to have to stop it somehow, and the enemy shows no sign of surrendering peacefully."

"That sadly seems correct." Paradine sighed "Hubert had suggested something, as it seems the only option." He nodded to Hubert who stood up.

"I know this seems…odd." He started, looking at the Windor trio, he continued "But I believe we all know of a way we can end this quicker."

All eyes trained on the knight with a purple eye. He seemed to take a moment before realizing what his brother suggested.

"I'm not sure if Lambda will agree to it." Asbel sighed. He stopped, considering if he should go on.

"Asbel, I know it's going to be hard for you…" Malik started.

"But if something isn't done, and soon, more people are going to die." Hubert continued. Asbel frowned.

"Asbel, you don't have to." Richard said "I trust your judgment as to what we should do."

The knight looked to his king. Slowly, his gaze travelled around the room, scanning everyone who awaited his decision. His eyes got a distant look as he thought of others. He sighed and slumped back on his chair, closing his eyes.

Sophie looked at her adopted father and hoped he wouldn't make any choices that would put him pass his limit.

Asbel opened his eyes and straightened himself, looking to Richard.

With a nod, he said "I'll do it."

* * *

He hated what he had to do. He hated the fact this war broke out. He hated he didn't know _what_ this war was about!

Right now, he knew he was trying to avoid it. It was easier said than done. Anywhere he ran there was fighting. Weird metallic machines with guns built in to arm-like attachments. The electric static of alchemy lighting the air. Bodies littered the ground. Some feebly breathing and fighting for life. Most already dead.

The young alchemist fled, hating himself for how cowardly he was. Something told him that something wasn't right. Maybe it was just his childish-self trying to convince him that he was doing the right thing. But… No, he shook his head. War is just organized murder.

Had to flee. How can he escape?

"CHIMERAS!" a soldier yelled. Ed dug his heels into the ground, turning his head around. Chimeras? They were using chimeras to fight?

As he thought that, a large purplish dragon swooped down from the sky, followed by several others. Edward felt himself freeze up in fear, his eyes wide and fixed on the beasts in the distance. One of them evaded bullets with extreme speed, landing on the ground and quickly breaking a soldier's spine like it was a twig.

Ed bit his lip, urging himself to run forward and to help them. He knew though… By the time he got there, they would all be dead. He was trapped inside himself. A prisoner to his own fear.

Run.

A voice inside him whispered, sending energy through his body. He rushed forward, clapping his hands and forcing them onto the ground. Spires of stone jutted out of the ground from where he was, knocking the creatures back from a platoon of soldiers. Sweat trickled down the side of his face as he attempted to stand.

The alchemist got to his feet and heard the flapping of wings behind him. It lunged forward, targeting to sink its teeth into his neck. Ed darted to one side, grimacing as its teeth met with his shoulder.

Edward leapt back, trying to get out of range of it. The dragon-like creature whirled around with its teeth bared in a growl. He clapped his hands again and attempted to slice it in two with the ground beneath them. A faint violet glow surged around the creature, disappearing as fast as it appeared. The thing wasn't harmed.

The blonde's eyes widened as he took a step back again. The creature advanced on him. Pointless. Was he…Was he going to die?

He turned to run, almost running into a wolf with the same color. Ed screamed and slid under it as it pounced at him. He struggled back up on his feet and ran, panting heavily. Pain from his shoulder racked through his body. He can't die here… He can't!

The wolf and dragon pursued Edward as he fled. The wolf skidded in a semi-circle in front of him and leapt, pinning the young alchemist to the ground. He thrashed, trying to kick off the canine, his scared eyes darting to where the dragon circled above, slowly coming closer.

Claws dug into his chest. Ed tried feebly to clap his hands again, finding the left arm pinned to the bloody ground. He kicked out, trying to escape. The wolf opened its jaws. Ed's thoughts raced, as his heart, and forced his head upward into the wolf's chest. It squealed in surprise and stumbled back. The blonde teen was on his feet in an instant, sprinting once more for his life.

**Okay, how was that? This is my first time writing about the ToG cast. I hope I did decent. n.n **

**Reviews would make me happy. :D**


	2. Chapter 2

…**Um…. I do not own Tales of Graces or FullMetal Alchemist. :3 But I am a cat.**

**Two**

The blonde panted heavily as he sprinted, trying to ignore the dizziness and the pain. Edward blundered carelessly over tangles of thorns and under low hanging tree limbs. Where was he going? His yellow irises blurred over with exhaustion. He somewhat recognized this path… The wolf chimera was gaining on him.

Ed shook his head and kept running, trying to gather his thoughts. Alchemy wouldn't do anything against these things. He was dizzy from blood loss. His chest felt torn, as it was. So much pain. So tired…. He shook his head and drove himself on. His hasty stride was sluggish. The wolf was gaining up on him.

The chimera leapt at him, tackling him onto the ground. Ed struggled feebly under the canine chimera. Pain. So much pain. So tired… The weight from his back was suddenly lifted, though he couldn't push himself up. Someone rolled him over onto his back and put an arm behind him, supporting him as his vision blurred.

A silhouette of white and purple looked at him, a woman, he assumed.

"Are you okay?" she asked. Ed's vision blurred to the point to everything being a smudge as he attempted to choke out a reply. The woman frowned and laid him back on the ground. "Stay still for a moment." She ordered gently. She closed her eyes and placed her hands slightly above his chest. She inhaled softly, exhaling slowly. Ed looked up at her, trying to focus and see her details more sharply.

Something comforting flooded into him, relieving him of pain. His vision focused, details quickly sharpening. The woman who knelt by him had purple hair and purple eyes. Her white dress was bunched up around her knees. She placed her hands on her legs as Edward sat up, staring at her dumbfounded.

"…What?" she blinked.

"How did you-…" Ed trailed off. An arte? Shit, this lady must be from Windor…

"Um, I used First Aid." She blinked. With a smile she added "I'm happy you're okay Mr…?"

"…Edward." Ed said after hesitating.

"My name is Sophie." She grinned, getting to her feet. "Do you need help standing?" Ed shook his head, keeping his eyes on her as he got to his feet. Sophie tilted her head slightly, looking down at him. "Um…You probably shouldn't be in the middle of this. You might get hurt."

"I kind of already did get hurt." Ed muttered. "…Thank you."

"Do you need me to bring you back home?" she blinked "The Nova Monsters will try and come at you again, or the Amestrian soldiers will try and kill you…"

"Nova Monsters?" Ed blinked "What are those?"

"…These things." She said, holding up the unconscious wolf-chimera by its scruff. Ed's eyes widened, his jaw dropping.

"How did you..?" he bit down on the words and shook his head. "No, it's all right Sophie." He looked around "…Actually, I could use your help in getting out of this forest." Everything seemed to be in one direction when he was running. He couldn't even remember clearly where he came from…

Sophie seemed to sense his concern and placed a hand on his head. She smiled gently and withdrew it, leaving the blonde wondering what customs they had in Windor. He was wary not to ask, in case she found out he was Amestrian. What if she led him back to her country? He dared to stray from a cautious silence.

"Um…Sophie?" he blinked "Can we go back-…" he winced at his slip up, hoping to covering up he continued swiftly "_to _Amestris?"

"Why would you want to go there?" she blinked. Ed relaxed slightly as she seemed not to notice his words. He quickly thought of an excuse, that wasn't exactly a lie.

"My brother's there." He said. Sophie tilted her head, thinking.

"So that's why you were leaving Amestris?" she blinked. Ed tried not to wince. Damn, she noticed. "Maybe that's why the Nova monsters attacked you, you smell like an Amestrian." She sighed "I'm sorry Edward, I think it'd be best to go back to Windor…"

So she thought he was originally from Windor who wanted to visit his brother. Ed tried to think of an excuse to go back, trying to convince Sophie to lead him to his own country… Where were they right now?

Sophie grabbed his hand and led him off. Ed blinked in confusion but semi-obediently followed. She probably knew where they were heading. A shadow of foreboding loomed over him, like the limbs of the trees above. Maybe he can sneak over the border back into Amestris. But what if they found he was a State Alchemist? He shuddered at the thought.

* * *

Mustang slid through the carnage like a snake, snapping and setting these chimeras into flames. His Lieutenant was beside him the entire war, refusing to leave Roy's side. To both of their confusion, the bullets had not affected the chimeras.

Riza stepped in front of Roy suddenly and sent a barrage of bullets into the body of an unfortunate soldier wearing a wide-brimmed hat. The colonel nodded at her and set ablaze a squad of soldiers in brown armor.

A loud humming noise was sounded, followed by his soldiers' outraged calls. Machines crawled past, shooting at people with cannons like rays of lights. Roy narrowed his eyes at them and set them on fire. They collapsed to ground like crippled toys.

Another, larger machine went past. This one decorated a royal blue color. On one of the legs of it, a turquoise insignia glowed. It was like a needle with a large circular thing on top, three points stretched out of it and two more on the 'needle' itself.

Roy's eyes narrowed at it and he hid, his lieutenant instantly hiding from it as well.

"Amarcians…" he whispered.

"What Colonel?" Riza blinked.

"It's nothing." his eyes followed the machine as it lumbered past them.

* * *

Asbel fell another soldier down, grimacing inwardly. He hated this. But he had to defeat these people to save his, his brother's, and his friend's countries.

_Alchemist. _Lambda said bluntly. Asbel skidded around from where the Alchemist was no doubt trying to transmute him. He had his sword in and out him before the man could even voice his astonishment.

_Asbel, I have an idea._

_What is it? _Asbel's thought was faint. He jumped out of the way of a soldier with a knife and stabbed them in the back.

_Perhaps you can separate Amestris from us. _

_How?_

Lambda explained , trying to tell him as much as he could without distracting him. Asbel nodded mutely, using Demon Fang to the soldiers trying to come up to his right.

Suddenly, a circle of Amestrian soldiers surrounded him, pointing guns as him. Asbel crouched slightly, showing his blade.

"INDIGNATION!"

They were all down in an instant, lightning and thunder tearing them apart. Cheria skidded to a halt besides Asbel, panting.

"Cheria, you shouldn't be out here!" Asbel blinked.

"Well I can't let you fight alone!" Cheria argued.

_We can use that plan. _Lambda.

"Cheria, let's fall back to the border." Asbel said, already sprinting off with Cheria at his heels. She blinked in confusion, looking at him with wide, brown eyes.

"What are you going to do?" she asked.

"Separate them from us." Asbel said flatly.

**Mainly Ed and Sophie this chapter. **

**How does Roy know about the Amarcians? XD YOU WILL NEVER KNOW!**

**Until I update. :3 And that happens quicker if you review.**


	3. Chapter 3

**Wow….Took forever to update this, didn't it? Heheh…. Well, here we go.**

**I no own FMA or ToG.**

**Three**

"Lord Asbel!" Bailey called, running up to meet him, his men at his heels. "Are you all right?"

"I'm fine Bailey." Asbel nodded "Do you know where Captain Malik is?"

"Captain Malik…?" Bailey thought for a moment, rubbing the scar on his face "He went to lead some of Fendel's men against some of the Amestrian militia."

"Right, thank you." The swordsman said, walking past him. Cheria and Bailey exchanged concern glances.

"This war is taking its toll on him, isn't it?" Bailey sighed.

"He's under a lot of pressure." Cheria said, trying to explain it to herself as much as to Bailey. She tore her gaze away from him and hurried to catch up to the white-cladded swordsman. He was speaking to one of the soldiers, and the cloth around his arm symbolized he was a messenger. The man nodded at his words, reciting them quietly to him. At Asbel's nod, he turned on heel and sprinted off into the undergrowth. Cheria slowed at the sight of Asbel. He seemed so much older than reality. Only now did she notice the dark grooves under his dull eyes. His shoulders slumped and the slightest bristle of a beard sprouted from his chin.

Asbel tensed up and looked over to her.

"Cheria, what's wrong?" he asked. The same concern was in his voice. Cheria forced the blush away from her face.

"It's nothing." she walked up to him and put a hand on his shoulder "Maybe you should rest for a bit?"

"Not right now…" Asbel said almost instantly, shaking his head. "I-…" his voice faded and he seemed to look through the ground. Cheria frowned, trying to meet his eyes. The bustle of the encampment surrounded them. Soldiers of Fendel, Strahta, and Windor cooperated and talked to one another. Under different circumstances, cooperation between the countries would've seemed like a dream come true. As it was, it was war. It isn't like the time they joined together to fight off Fodra. That was just a select few, and something supernatural.

This time they were fighting other humans. It repulsed Asbel, and it repulsed Cheria as well. It repulsed them all that they had to fight, after all these years of fighting the supernatural, their own kind.

Suddenly Asbel took her hand in his.

"Cheria." His voice was hardly a whisper "I…I want to talk to you about what I might have to do."

Cheria said nothing, but nodded. Asbel inhaled deeply and looked around the camp. He guided her to a fairly empty part and whispered softly.

"Cheria, what Lambda came up with…" he sighed "I told you I was planning to separate them from us. Lambda plans to do that. He wants to use their own energy to separate us."

"What? But that'd be using eleth, wouldn't it?" Cheria frowned "Lambda uses the same eleth for his strength that we use to survive. If he does that…"

Asbel shook his head "_Their_ own energy." He said "The energy they use to use their 'alchemy'. He wants to harvest it and uses it to make a trench of their own alchemic energy dividing us. That way, our eleth can't go through to them."

Cheria nodded "All right. I think I understand it… But… Asbel, why is this bothering you so much?"

"…Do you know what the Truth is?"

* * *

Mustang slid underneath the carnage of a building, snorting out the dust that strayed into his nostrils. The colonel rolled into a trench and crouched there as another one of the machines lumbered past. Riza was quickly by his side. The area they were in was further from the battle. They could hear the echoes of gunshot, the hum of the machines the screams of the people.

"Colonel?" Riza asked in a low voice. "What exactly is your objective?"

"To end this damn war." He said bluntly.

"But sir, we're heading away from the fighting." She reasoned.

"I'm aware of that." Roy replied in his same blunt tone. He glanced in both directions, holding his breath to hear everything. Silently he darted across the wasteland that once was the bordering village. Confused, Riza followed close behind.

She knew better than to think Roy would abandon them all… He'd never do that. Surely he had a plan, and she would always back him up. Always.

"Wait." Roy abruptly said, holding an arm out. Riza stopped and looked at her superior. What was he doing…? Suddenly his eyes widened and he pushed Hawkeye down a small slope. The two rolled down the hill and came to a halt at the carnage of an old building.

"Sir, why did y-" Riza started to demand before a ridiculously loud explosion tore through the air. Mustang calmly put his hands over his ears as the ground shook underneath them. Hawkeye hurried to clamp her hands over her ears to keep herself from going deaf.

Her amber eyes widened as she saw a large pillar of bluish light tear through the spot they were standing in just moment before. It tore into the ground in a drill-like motion, throwing up dirt and debris. The sound was barely muffled by her hands. After a few moments, the light suddenly disappeared, like it collapsed in on itself.

"S-sir…?" Riza blinked, turning to Roy.

"Light trap. Got to be more careful." He muttered, not looking at her. "I think we're close to the border now… We should go around the main section of the battle…"

Riza just nodded. He obviously knew what he was doing, and he was obviously hiding something. She'll give him time to explain later…

* * *

Ed's mind raced as Sophie led him through the woods. From the distance the sounds of war echoed faintly. Which brought a question to the alchemist's mind. Why was Sophie so far from the battle…?

He focused his eyes again, and he noticed he had been zoning out. It was getting darker than he thought. How long have they been walking? How far was he getting from his home?

"I think we should stop for the night…" she said suddenly, stopping. Her purple eyes looked around, as if she was scanning for anything. Ed's vision blurred and he suddenly felt like he had no strength. The blonde collapsed onto the ground, groaning at the sudden dizziness that over whelmed him. Sophie was kneeling by him in an instant.

"Oh my goodness…" she fretted, putting an arm behind Ed for support. "I shouldn't have pushed you so hard, I'm so sorry…" Edward showed his confusion on his face, finding he had to strength to speak. "First Aid didn't completely heal you, Edward." She explained, leaning him against a tree. "It healed the wound, yes. But… Oh my, how long have you been in Amestris…?"

The blonde looked up at her weakly, debating what he should tell her. He couldn't say that long, but she obviously is implying he'd been there a while.

"A couple years." He rasped.

"So your body is not used to eleth. So that's wrong." Sophie frowned. "I should've checked in the beginning. The sudden exposure to eleth is making you all woozy…"

"Woozy?" he asked before thinking. He inwardly grimaced. That may have been common slang in Window, idiot.

"Just something my friend Pascal says." Sophie smiled. "Don't worry Edward, the dizziness will pass, it's normal as far as I know. Just relax and sleep for a bit. We'll start moving again in the morning."

The blonde sighed, partially in relief. So it's not a common phrase in Windor, so he didn't sound too foreign. Another concern snuck into him. Ed flicked his head over in the directions of the fight, trying to make his worry plain on his face.

Sophie cocked her head, confusion obvious on her face. She turned to look in the direction the alchemist indicated. After thinking for a few moments, she nodded.

"Don't worry about the fight, okay Edward? I'll make sure nothing happens to you." Sophie smiled. Ed blinked. She'd stay up all night…? Wouldn't she need to rest eventually as well? How does she expect to move in the morning…?

_Alphonse._

The sudden thought came from nowhere. How could he even forget Al for an instant? What if he never makes it back to Amestris? What about Alphonse? His stubbornness took hold and he tried to get up, but sudden nausea overcame him. Ed fell back to the ground, feeling numb all over.

What if he never got back? What would happen to Al? He made a promise, dammit! He made a promise…

The darkness of sleep took him.

…

_Even in his dream, Ed felt as if the energy was being drained out of him. He felt as if he was bleeding through some nonexistent wound, and the blood was being swept away by an unseen current. The ground beneath him felt as if it were moving in waves. _

_ Under his fingers he could feel the earth tremble as energy was swept past. It drained out of him, and he didn't quite know how to describe the sensation to himself._

_ Did it hurt? Was it unpleasant? Or was it just a strange feeling?_

_ Then the ground started to quiver._

_ At first it was faint, a light bounce kind of motion underneath his body. But it progressively got worse. Soon enough, Edward felt as if the entire planet was shaking ferociously, like a horse trying to buck off its rider. It felt as if he were actually shaking, trembling along with the ground. _

_ The energy that was being drained out of him seemed to go from a steady trickle to an overflowing river. It rushed away from him, and he could feel other kinds sweeping past him, right in his grasp but slipping through his fingertips._

_ Edward felt something grasp his shoulders and shake him. Faintly he heard a voice._

"Edward! Edward, you need to wake up! Edward please!"

_…Sophie. It was Sophie. She sounded so desperate for some reason…_

"Edward!"

_Was that her voice? Or just his sub consciousness borrowing it?_

_ He felt himself lift from the ground, then slumping over it. No… It wasn't the ground. It was alive. Even through the uncontrollable shaking he could tell it was alive._

_ Then it hit him this wasn't all a dream._

_ 'Wake up!' Ed screamed to himself. He felt as if his consciousness was stuck in tar, being pulled in deeper whenever he thrashed. 'Wake up! Wake up!'_

_ Finally his eyes opened._

The ground was shaking. He was right about that. The ground was shaking, everything was shaking. He could see the white dress of the one carrying him. Sophie. Sophie was carrying him…? How could she be that strong? He must way a bit more extra because of his automail… He shook his head and tried to clear it. An earthquake? Was that happening? An earthquake?

"Sophie!" Ed tried to call, his voice drowned out by the trembling of the earth. He started to wiggle out of her grasp but thought better of it.

Not only was her grip surprisingly firm, but he felt like he had no energy to resist anything. Was that because of the eleth effecting his body-? Ed surprised himself by taking this time to realize he doesn't even know what eleth is. He couldn't ask that though… Something told him it is was what the people of Windor called their life force. But that doesn't make any sense… It's metaphoric, it shouldn't affect him at all.

That and it didn't feel like he was weak because of taking in foreign energy. It was because he was losing energy…. The ground felt like it was _taking_ his energy from him!

He heard a faint squeak before he started to tumble down to the ground. Sophie rolled over as well as they both fell. Ed tried to pick himself up but collapsed, both because of his lack of energy and the vicious shaking beneath them.

Sophie managed to get enough balance to stumble to her feet, but didn't seem to do much more. She looked to some spot behind them and Edward struggled to turn as well.

Suddenly overwhelming heat blasted its way from the core of the planet. He felt the last of energy be suddenly ripped away from him and felt it flee to something. Summoning his last bit of stubbornness, he forced himself up to his knees and turned around.

Looming who knows how high was a wall of shimmering blue energy. Ed's yellow eyes widened. It was his energy, any energy by anyone.

The wall was made purely out of alchemical energy.

* * *

Riza was struggling to get to her feet as the world shook around her. She looked over to where her colonel looked as if he could pass out at any moment. Roy was barely managing to keep himself on his knees, let alone stand up.

Then it suddenly stopped.

The stillness was strange to her. Was the earthquake really that long? Or was it so intense it felt like it was long? Riza shakily stood up and turned to look behind her to check if anyone was coming. She gasped at the looming wall of blue.

"Sir, I don't think we can head back anytime soon…"

"Of course not, Lieutenant." Roy panted "That wall… it's made of alchemy…And we're stuck here… In Windor."

**Whew… Done. I used the word energy so many times in this chapter I felt as if I were writing something for Dragon Ball Z. Heheh, me humor.**

**Well, I hope you enjoyed reading this chapter as much as I enjoyed writing it.**


End file.
